This refers to Gopalkrishna Gandhi's article A flagstaff of a man (Incidentally, July 14). Undoubtedly, S Radhakrishnan was one of the most illustrious vice-presidents that the nation ever had.

India needs an apolitical figure like Radhakrishnan as vice-presidentThis refers to Gopalkrishna Gandhi's article A flagstaff of a man (Incidentally, July 14). Undoubtedly, S Radhakrishnan was one of the most illustrious vice-presidents that the nation ever had. The glory that the first Bharat Ratna recipient - who was nominated for the Nobel Prize in literature for five consecutive years from 1933-1937 - brought to the second-highest office in the country is unforgettable. However, the political bickering that the country has been witnessing over the presidential and vice-presidential elections would have made him turn in his grave. It's time the exalted office is occupied by an apolitical person who doesn't reduce the office to a sinecure. KV Chandrashekara, Delhi

IIThe article is timely. It would have been a masterly political stroke on the part of the Congress had it nominated Gandhi for the post of vice-president. It is appalling that vote-bank politics is coming in the way of India getting the services of competent and eminent people like Gandhi.Jawahar Lal Dehra, Faridabad

It's not the right time for cricketThis refers to the editorial Playing the bigger game (Our Take, July 18). At a time when a Rawalpindi court has said that the findings of a judicial commission that visited Mumbai were illegal and could not be made part of the evidence against the 26/11 accused, the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) decision to resume bilateral cricketing ties is quite out of sync with national sentiment. Until Pakistan takes concrete action regarding India's oft-repeated concerns over terrorism emanating from its soil, we must snap cultural and sporting ties with that country. Anupam Chaturvedi, via email